The lieutenant governors are appointed by the Governor General, in the name of The Queen, on the advice of the prime minister, to represent The Queen in their provinces. In this way, the vice-regal representatives mirror the country’s federal system, underlining that the provinces are as potent in the exercise of their constitutional responsibilities as is the national government in its assigned jurisdictions. It is an historic office, in a sense pre-dating that of the Governor General, as the earliest colonial governors—of whom Samuel de Champlain was first—in fact had responsibility for areas roughly corresponding to some of today’s provinces.

Following the use of a successful ad hoc advisory panel for the selection of a Governor General in 2010, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced on November 4, 2012, the creation of a permanent new Advisory Committee on Vice-Regal Appointments, chaired by the Canadian Secretary to The Queen, Kevin MacLeod, with permanent members Robert Watt (Citizenship Judge and formerly first Chief Herald of Canada) and Jacques Monet, SJ (historian, author and former University president). The new non-partisan Advisory Committee provides the Prime Minister with non-binding recommendations on the selection of the Governor General and Lieutenant Governors. For the purpose of recommending a Lieutenant Governor, two temporary members are added to the Committee from the province concerned.

As with the Governor General, the lieutenant governors are appointed to serve at Her Majesty’s pleasure. However, in practice, vice-regal appointments are customarily limited to five years, unless the prime minister of the day recommends that their time in office be extended.

The role of the lieutenant governors is both constitutional and social. As representative of the Sovereign, they form a part of the provincial legislative assemblies, summoning and dissolving its sessions and giving royal assent to legislation in The Queen’s name. They must approve all actions (&quotOrders-in-Council&quot) of the provincial executive councils. Generaly, they preside over the provinces’ individual honours systems, allowing the provincial orders and similar recognitions to carry the dignity and prestige of the Crown. Socially, they lend their vice-regal patronage to a variety of causes and community events, ranging from the Scouts to prizes for academic and literary achievement, thus underlining the important role of the Crown in encouraging Canadians to give of their best. Each lieutenant governor chooses several areas of special concern that serve to draw the attention of the population to causes ranging, for example, from Aboriginal reconciliation to youth and disability issues.

Much of the most influential role of the Crown takes place in local communities, day to day, and often under the radar of the national media, through the constant round of vice-regal activities undertaken by Canada’s ten lieutenant governors. Each represents The Queen in a way reflective of the province and of their own personal style. Below are brief descriptions of The Queen's provincial representatives.

The Hon. Janice Filmon, Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba

Alberta

The Honourable Lois Mitchell

Installation: June 12, 2015
Position most recently held prior to appointment: Business linkages and community service leader
www.lieutenantgovernor.ab.ca

British Columbia

The Honourable Janet Austin

Installation: April 24, 2018
Position most recently held prior to appointment: CEO, YWCA Vancouver
Key focus: fairness, social justice, vulnerable people
Quotable: “Our Queen has given us a symbol of civility, dignity, and self-sacrifice. Ever gracious and courteous, she has earned the respect of people around the world. I promise to do my best to represent her in British Columbia with the commitment to public service and the kind concern for others that she has always exemplified." (from Installation address)www.ltgov.bc.ca

Manitoba

The Honourable Janice C Filmon

Installation: June 19, 2015
Position most recently held prior to appointment: community activist in charitable and non-profit projects
Key focus: leadership development
www.manitobalg.ca

New Brunswick

The Honourable Jocelyne Roy-Vienneau

Installation: October 23, 2014
Position most recently held prior to appointment: vice-president at the Université de Moncton’s Shippagan Campus
www.gnb.ca/lg

Newfoundland and Labrador

The Honourable Judy May Foote

Installation: May 3, 2018
Position most recently held prior to appointment: Federal and provincial cabinet minister
Key focus: Community support: cancer mentoring, children, heritage
Quotable: “There is no place on our planet that is perfect, but we need to come together to face what we're being confronted with and to deal with those challenges...we should never think that those we elect have all of the answers." (from Installation address)www.govhouse.nl.ca

Nova Scotia

The Honourable Arthur J. LeBlanc

Installation: June 28, 2017
Position most recently held prior to appointment: Justice, Supreme Court of Nova Scotia
Key focus: Community service, Acadian heritage and community
Quotable: “I am deeply honoured to have been called to serve in a position that reaches back to the earliest days of contact between the Mi’kmaq and those French adventurers who arrived at Annapolis Royal more than 400 years ago…” From Installation addresslt.gov.ns.ca

Ontario

The Honourable Elizabeth Dowdeswell

Installation: Septmber 23, 2014
Position most recently held prior to appointment: president and CEO of the Council of Canadian Academies
Key focus: Ontario in the World
www.lgontario.ca

Prince Edward Island

The Honourable Antoinette Perry

Installation: October 20, 2017
Position most recently held prior to appointment: Music and French teacher
Key focus: Acadian culture
Quotable: “I am honoured to accept with gratitude the role bestowed on me today, in accepting the responsibility I am inspired by the dedicated service displayed so gracefully and elegantly by her majesty Queen Elizabeth II...As a girl guide, I recall having a great desire to meet her one day and now I get to live that dream — a few years later," (from Installation address)www.gov.pe.ca

Québec

The Honourable J. Michel Doyon

Installation: 24 September 2015
Position most recently held prior to appointment: lawyer, head of the Québec Bar
Key focus: Appreciation of democratic institutions
www.lieutenant-gouverneur.qc.ca

Saskatchewan

The Honourable W. Thomas Molloy

Installation: March 21, 2018
Position most recently held prior to appointment: Lawyer with long-time involvement in treaty-making and reconciliation with Canada’s Indigenous people
Key focus: Reconciliation
Quotable: “it is important to start reconciliation with all the people of Saskatchewan which obviously will help improve our province, and our economy.” (from Installation address)www.ltgov.sk.ca